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Process and Apparatusfor Mamufaeturi'ng Illuminating Gas. yNo. 234,400. Patented Nov. 16,1880,

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ARTHUR O. GRANGER AND JOSEPH H. COLLINS, JR., OF PHILADELPHIA, PA.

PROCESS OF AND APPARATUS FOR MANUFACTURING ILLUMINATING-GAS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 234,400, dated November 16, 1880.

Application led April 12, 1880.

To all whom tt may concern Be it known that we, ARTHUR O. GRANGER and J osnrrr H. COLLINS, J r., both ofthe city and county of Philadelphia and State ot' Pennsylva-nia, have invented an Improvement in Processes and Apparatus for Manufacturing' Illuminating-Gas, of which the following is a specication.

Our improvements relate to that process and ro apparatus which are employed in the production of what is technically known as watergas; 7 and it consists in the operation and novel construction of various parts of the same, and which improvements are fully and clearly described in the following specification, shown in the accom pan yin g drawings, and referred to in the appended claims.

The process ot' producing gas from steam, incandescent carbon, and luid hydrocarbon,

zo broadly, is old, and many forms of apparatus for producing` such gas are also old, but our invention relates to many improvements upon such old forms, whereby the apparatus is under more perfect control, can be built at aless expense, and the gas made more economically and purer in composition.

There are many forms of apparatus for producing water-gas and carbureting' it, some of which are shown in patents to Frost, Strong,

3@ and Hunter; but we do not claim anything set forth in those patents. Neither do we claim the processes set forth in those patents.

In the drawings, Figure l is a vertical section of the entire works. Fig. 2 is a section of 3 5 the generator-blastpipe nozzle. Fig. 3 is a cross-section of the superheater. Fig. 4 isa sectional plan of the washer. Fig. 5 is a sectional elevation of one of the pressure-gages. Fig. 6 is a section of the steam-valve which 4o admits steam to the generator. Fig. 7 is a plan of the steam-valve operating and regulating mechanism. Fig.S is a sectional perspective view, showing the method of supporting the grate-bars.

Corresponding letters of reference indicate like parts of the apparatus.

A is the generator, B the superheater, and O the washer. The generator and also the superheater are provided at their respective 5o tops with valves D, free to rotate upon a stem, which is bolted to an arm, E, secured to a rock- (No model.)

ing shaft, F, carrying` upon either end the inclined guide Gr and arm I, respectively, and working in bearings attached to the valve-seat. Free to slide upon the guide G is a weight, H, which in practice is preferably suspended upon a small wheel or roller. To open the valve D the arm I is pulled back, changing the incline ofthe guide G, whereupon the weight H runs to the opposite side of the rocking shaft F and 6o helps to raise the valve D by gravity, and at the time when the lever or arm I has the least power.

The generator is furnished with gratebars and an air-tight door, which extends above and below7 such grate-bars. The gratebars are supported upon a wrought-iron ring, A2, which, in turn, is supported by fire-brick A', which constitutes the narrowing' of the generator at the bottom. This is clearly shown 7o in Fig. S. Formerly this iron ring was supported upon an expensive iron carriage, and it -was impossible to clean the ash-pit; but with our construction there is not the slightest troublein any way.

Entering the ash-pit under the grate-bars is the blast-nozzle J, of peculiar construction. Heretofore ithas been customary to blow the air through a horizontal pipe under the gratebars, as would be indicated by tube Mf, but in 8o that case the air was forced across the ash-pit against the wall on the opposite side, eXpen ding its force and supplying more oxygen to the re at that side than anywhere else, which was a decided objection, inasmuch as coal burned unevenly, packed and caked on one side, and allowing the steam greater chance to escape Without decomposition. Vith the old method the lower' portions of the bed of coal were reduced to ashes before the coal on top was red 9o hot, this latter being necessary in order to vaporize the uid hydrocarbon, and frequently the superheater was hot enough, but the generator-coal not being red hot on top, time was lost in bringing it up to that condition,'and the 95 lower portions of coal were wasted away, whereas in our method the condition ofthe coal on top is of no great importance, as We vaporize the oil either in the top of the superheater or in the vaporizer in the connectingroo Hue 5 and by reason of the bed of coal being' brought to the incandescent state quicker with our method of blast the coal remains more solid, and so holds a larger quantity of heat than when b v a slower' combustion it is partially reduced to ashes. \Ve, will, however, with our method, more pert'ectl y decompose the steam, and as a result we will have for the saine amount of coal and steam a larger volume of gas and produced in a shorter space ot' time. By bringing the blast-pipe under the generator grate-bars inthe middle, and then providing such pipes with the bell-inouths J' and a smaller one, J2, within the former, the air is forced up and spread evenly, and with equal force, all over the grate-surface, producing even combustion and lesscning the chances ot' the steam being uudecomposed. Then cleaning the generatontire a plate or cover, j, is placed over the nozzle to prevent its being choked up with ashes and cinders. This last pipe J is provided with a valve, K, which is worked by the lever Z upon thc working-platform at the top. This lever Z is hinged to a hollow standard, L, by link L', and is connected to the valve K by the rod lf. Opeiiing into the generator under the grate-bars is a tube, M', which contains the end of the steanrpipe m. 7e particularly require that the nozzle ofthe steain-pipe m shall be directed up toward the grate-bars, because it' the steam is blown upon the red-hot carbon it is instantlyY decomposed and gas immediately produced. Heretofore it has been the habit to blow the steam into the horizontal blast-pipe at the bottom and then allow it to iind its way into the generator, and in which ease much of it was condensed by contact with the cold pipe and fire-brick, tvc., aboutthe bottom ofthe generator, and no gas is produced until about four minutes have passed i'rom the beginning ot' the steam admittance, whereas with our construction little or no steam is condensed and gas is instantly produced. Should the nozzle of this pipe m be worn the cap to the tube M' can be taken ot't' and the end changed.

The steam-pipe m is provided with a valve, M, ot' peculiar construction. This valve has its valve-stem provided with a screw-thread, fm', of such a pitch that one complete revolution entirely opens the valve. This is very important,inasmuch as it is necessary to know how much steam is admitted to thc generator for conversion into gas. To operate this valve we provide a hollow standard, N, upon the workin g-platt'orm at the top, furnished with a f disk, N', divided upon its upper surface and near its periphery into degrees or angles, Fig. 7. Passing up through this standard is a rod, n, which is in connection with the valve M and carr infY ust above the disk N' a iointer a2,

o l a and a handle, a'. By turning the handle and pointer at the top it is immediately known how wide the valve is open. Entering the top ot' the generator A, and above the level oil' the l coal, is a blast-pipe, O, provided with the necessary valve, whichis not shown. The object ot this pipe O will be hereinafter explained.

Connecting the superheater B with the generator A is a ilre-brick-liued tube, P. The superheater B is preferably, on account ofeheap construction, cylindrical in shape outside, but is so lined that a square prismatic opening extends vertically through it to the arch at the bottom. The object ot' making this opening square or rectangular in shape is that the ordinary tire-brick can be used for the entire lining instead ot' the expensive speciallymade curved bricks here totore used. The arch B at the bottom is horizontal on the top, whereby greater strength is obtained, and the loose brick above will have a level foundation.

lt has been the practice heretofore to make the arches in superheaters curved both on top and bottom.

The bottom is provided with a cleaning-door. Opening from this superheatcr B, under the arch. B', is an exit-tine, Q, which has two branches, one of which terminates in a valve,

R, of similar construction to those already de scribed. Situated over this valve R, but not in contact with it, is a smoke-stack, S. ln general practice this valve was inclosed within the stack, and it was impossible to prevent the valve it'roni burning and iarping by the intense heat it was ot' necessity subjected to, and the consequence was that when the valve was closed and the gas produced there was great loss from leakage. lt was also very difficultto get at the valve to make repairs. By the construction shown all this is entirely obviated. A construction somewhat similar to this is shown in a patent to Rowland.

Pipe Q' leads to the cross Q2, which is used for cleaning purposes. lIt is composed ot' two hinged doors, q q, whicharekepttightly closed by loops and screws, as shown in Fig. 1. Crosses with cleaning-doors have been used before. From this cross descends the tube C' into the water contained in the washer C. The bottom ofthe tube C' is closed, and is provided with small perforations, c. Surrounding the pipe or tube C', i ust above the perforation c, extending out and inclined slightly upward, is the cylindrical plate C'. By'these means the gas is caused to descend below the water-level, and is thus finely divided up and brought into thorough contact with the water, whereby it is ei'ectively washed. The washed gas esca-pes from the cylindrical washerby the tube C3. A washer somewhat similar to this was patented to Miller; but we do not claim anything shown by him.

Situated above the superheater B is the oiltank T, which is provided with a glass gage to indicate the quantity ot' oil contained therein. From this tank the oil is drawn into trough T', from which it is allowed to drop into the superheater by pi pes t, and becomes vol-utilized. It is best to introduce the fluid hydrocarbons in the superheater for the reason that they will llow more freely. ln the old method ot' putting them in the top of the generator, drop` IOO IIO

ping onto the coal, it is, during the rst half of the run, very difficult, and, indeed, impossible, to get in the proper amount, because the large volume of hydrogen rushing up through the coal drives back the oil, and it is only during the last half of the run, when the tire is cooled off and the volume of hydrogen is much less, that the oil will tlow freely, and it then has to be forced in in large quantities, so as to make the gas extremely rich, trusting` to the rich gas of the latter part of the run or heat mixing or diffusing in the holder, and so producing a gas of average candlepower. ln our method the oil is introduced in a chamber in which the current is downward, and so the proper amount can flow in during all parts ot the run, and so saving the waste due to putting in an excess in the last part, as in the old way, and securing a gas of even candlepower from lirst to last. In our method the tendency is for the gas to draw the oil after it instead ot' stopping its ow, as in the old method. Over the top of the trough T is a glass case or covering, T2, preventing any oil which may be evaporated from the said trough escaping into the atmosphere of the room, and which is so objectionable with the open troughs now in common use.

It desired, the iluid hydrocarbons may be admitted into acoil or vaporizer, p,from which they issue as a vapor.

In connection with the foregoing apparatus we also provide pressure-gages U, which are shown in Fig. 5. They consist in a hollow cylinder, air-tight, provided at the top with glass tubes a', which extend nearly to the bottom inside, and at thebottom they are provided with a valve, a3, and pipe u,in connection with pipes P, Q', and C. In connection with thepipe u is a small pipe, u2, which extends nearly to the top of the gage inside. The gage is then nearly filled with water or other liquid, Fig. 5. From this construction it is evident that it' any pressure occurs anywhere about the works it is instantly made apparent bythe water being forced up the glass tubes.

It was formerly necessary to screw down the doors or valves D; but with our special construction they are suflciently weighted, and in case of an explosion, which often occurs, they act as explosive doors. Before opening the door or valve D for the purpose of throwing coal into the generator, steam or blast, if either are open, are shut ot't' from m and J, and air is blown through pipe O to blow out all explosive gases from the generator.

In the Lowe apparatus now in use the products of combustion pass from the generator at the top down atlue and enter the superheater at the bottom, where air is admitted to burn the gases to bring the superheater to a high temperature. By this it is readily seen that the gases produced in the generator were greatly cooled before they reached the superheater, and consequently about ten minutes elapse before the gases become sufliciently hot for combustion with the oxygen ot` the airblast, and frequently a red-hot bar has to be inserted to ignite the gases, whereas with our construction the connection between the superheater and generator' is made at the top and is short, and the air to burn the gases produced in the generator for the purpose ot' heating the superheater is admitted by the pipe 0 just at the point where there is the greatest amount of heat, and so instant combustion is assured and loss of time obviated. Also, the superheaters, as usually constructed, are small in diameter and very high, and the gases pass upward through them quickly and without much effect, whereas b v our construction of' a superheater of' large diameter and of the same height as the generator, and causing the gases to descend, they spread overthe entire interior and bring it to a high temperature in a very short space of time and do their greatest work.

The process of working is as follows: The valves M and D D being closed, air is forced in by the pipes J and O, bringing the coal to a state of incandescence and burning the escaping gases in the generator and above the coal. The tlame and products from the combustion of these gases pass through the superheater, raising` its temperature, and escape by valve R. and chimney S. Vhen the coal in generatorl A is brought to incandescence the blast from 0 and J is shut ott' and valve R closedand valve M opened, and the steam, preferably superheated, from the nozzle ot' steam-pipe m is instantly decomposed by the incandescent carbon, the resulting gases being hydrogen and carbonio oxide, which pass through tlue P into the superheater7 where they meet volatilized fluid hydrocarbons, which now drip from the pipe t. The gas so produced passes down through the superheater, where it becomes a fixed gas, and then through flues Q, bf, and C into the water in the washer C, and finally passes through pipe G3 to the scrubbers, and then to the holders.

Having now described our invention, what we claim, and desire to secure by Letters Paten t, is

l. The herein-described process for manufacturing illuminating-gas, consisting in the following steps: raising to incandescence a bed of carbonaceous material by a blast of air in the primary generator, producing carbonic oxide; then burning this carbonio oxide by air above the bed of incandescent carbonaceous material and in the primary generator; then causing the products of combustion to pass into a superheater and descend under slight pressure, spreading into every available heating-space and raising said superheater to a high temperature; then decomposing steam by the incandescent carbonaceous material in the primary generator, producing water or heating gas; then carbnreting such gas by fluid hydrocarbons in its passage from the primary generator to the body ot' the super- IOS heater, and finally fixing the gas by passing it through the highly-heated superheater, substan tially as and for the purpose specified.

2. The combination of the generator A, provided with blast-nozzle J J', blast-pipe 0, steam-pipe m, exit-flue P, with superheater B, provided at the top with hydrocarbon-tubet and at the bottom with outlet-line Q, valve R, flue Q', cross Q2, and with washer C, provided with vertical tube C', perforated at the bottom e, and a conical disk, (12, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

3. The combination ot' generator A, blastiiozzle J J', steam-pipe m, blast-pipe O, provided with a valve, O', and exit-Hue P, oii the same level, and an automatic explosive door, D, constructed substantially as and for the purpose specified.

4. A charging and explosive valve con] posed of the following parts in combination valve or disk D, attached to and supported by an arm, E, secured to a rock-shalt. F, provided on one end with an arm, I, and on the other with a guide, G, upon which a weight, H, is supported and free to move thereon, all being attached to and working upon a valve-seat, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

5. GeneratorA, provided with means to admit blast under the grate-bars,in combination with automatic explosive valve D, blast-pipe O, provided with valve O' and exit-lue P on the same level and exactly opposite each other, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

6. Generator A, superheater B, both provided with automatic explosive valves or doors D, in combination with tine P, blast-pipe 0 on the saine level, exit-tine Q, and hydrocarbonpipe t at the top of the superheater and in front of the ilue P, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

7. Superheater B, provided at the top with automatic explosive door D and flue P, and at the bottom with exit-flue Q, the cross-sec` tion ot the superheater beingr circular outside and square inside, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

S. Generator A, in combination with blastnozzle J J', situated under the middle of the grate-bars, blast-pipe O, flue P, square superheater B, exit-Hue Q, and valve R, substantially as and for the purpose speeitied.

9. Blast-nozzle provided with a bell-mouth, J', and containing' within suoli bell-mouth a second or smaller bell-inoutli, J", for the purpose of spreadii'ig the air evenly over the gratearea, substantially as and for the purpose specied.

10. The blast-nozzle J, composed of two bellinouths, one situated within the other, valve K, valve-rod 7c, lever l, link l', and standard L, in combination with generator A, substaiitially as and for the purpose specified.

l1. Oil-tank T, provided with a glass gage, in combination with glass trough T', glass cover T2, and tube t, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

In testimony ot' which invention we hereunto set our hands.

A. O. GRANGER. JNO. H. COLLINS, JR.

WVitnesses GEO. L. BAUM, C. CUYLER GREGORY. 

